Carpenter Breaks School Record, Cougars Move Past El Camino

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. – College of the Canyons wide receiver and Conference Offensive Player of the Year Hayo Carpenter pulled down 10 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns to help lead the No. 1 Cougars over visiting No. 4 El Camino 36-27 on Saturday night in the Southern California Semifinals. The win means College of the Canyons returns to the Southern California championship game on Dec. 6 against No. 3 Mt San Antonio College, a double overtime winner against No. 2 Fullerton College earlier that day. 

Carpenter, who has already verbally committed to the University of Minnesota, scored on passes of 56 and 60 yards, and the 236 yards total broke his own school record of 225 yards set against Moorpark College on Oct. 11. Carpenter also broke the school record for receiving yards in a season, set last season at 1,404 also by Carpenter. His current mark now stands at 1,560 yards.

It was COC kicker Ricky Drake who started the scoring in the game against Warriors, when he nailed at 32-yarder with three minutes left in the first quarter. El Camino would respond instantly though as Isaac Williams returned the following kickoff 68 yards to the COC 27-yard line. Three plays later James Coy found Tony Sekona for a 20-yard touchdown and a 7-3 El Camino lead. 

The Cougars came right back as quarterback Brad McClellan found Carpenter down the sideline for a 56-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter to regain the lead at 10-7. McClellan had a spectacular night, throwing for 300 yards and two scores and running in another. 

A miscue by the El Camino hurt its next series. Facing a second and ten on COC's 13-yard line, a Warrior was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, taking them back 15 yards. Two incomplete passes later, the Warriors lined up for a field goal, but COC defensive lineman Dejuan Yates came up big and blocked the kick. Tavaris Roberts recovered the ball at the Cougars' 40-yard line, and the Cougars took six plays to march 60 yards, finally scoring on a 12-yard Fred Winborn touchdown run to put the Cougars up 17-7.

College of the Canyons finished off the scoring in the second half on a 10-play 85-yard drive that saw McClellan make some big plays with his feet: McClellan had scrambles of 27 and 13 yards, and scored on a 10-yard dash to the end zone. The extra point sailed wide, and the scoring at half ended with COC up 23-7.

The second half began with a huge El Camino surge, as Kamil Vainikol sacked McClellan on three straight possessions, driving the Cougars back to their own 3-yard line. After a 38-yard Drake punt and 17-yard return, James Coy hit Sione Tuli on a 23-yard touchdown pass to cut the COC lead to 23-14. 

College of the Canyons responded with a pair of Drake field goals, from 47 and 23 yards, to give the Cougars a 29-14 cushion early in the fourth quarter. 

The Cougars got the ball back after the Warriors failed to convert on a fourth and one, and McClellan hit Carpenter on a 60-yard touchdown pass to put the score at 36-14. 

El Camino responded with its own drive, going 83 yards on 10 plays as Coy hit William Bullock on a 5-yard TD pass with six minutes left in the game to cut the score to 36-21. 

El Camino went for the onside kick but the Cougars recovered. Eventually COC punted and El Camino began a new drive from its own 13-yard line. The Warriors drove the field and scored just under three minutes later when Coy hit Dejarrius Adams on a 17-yard touchdown pass with 2:49 left in the game. But exultation turned to despair when El Camino's kicker pushed the extra point wide right, turning what would have been a one-score eight-point lead for COC into a two-score nine point lead at 36-27. 

El Camino again went for the onside kick, but, again, COC recovered and eventually let time run out standing on the Warrior two-yard line. 

Running back Fred Winborn had another stand out night, carrying the ball 25 times for 186 yards and a score. 

The COC defense had a strong night, holding El Camino to just 60 yards on the ground. Eric Wells led the way with seven tackles and a sack, and Yates had four tackles, a sack and a blocked field goal. 

College of the Canyons now turns its attention to the incoming No. 3 Mt. SAC Mounties in the Southern California Championship game. The Cougars last played in this game in 2005, eventually losing 24-19 to Grossmont College.